Meet Eden

CYPRESS DONOR CENTER OFFERS CHANCE TO SAVE LIVES AND SEE THE ASTROS

CYPRESS – There is nothing more American than baseball and saving lives. Everyone who participates in The Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center’s Home Run for Life competition will get a chance at both through June 30.

Donors who give platelets at a Neighborhood Donor Center will earn a chance to win field-level Astros tickets. Participants will move up a base every time they donate, and they’ll get a bonus entry when they hit a home run. At the end of the competition, four winners will be randomly selected.

Cypress residents have the option of conveniently donating in The Blood Center’s newest facility at 15050 Fairfield Village Square Dr., Suite 105.

Platelets are in high demand and primarily help cancer patients. Because they only have a shelf-life of five days, donors are always needed. Those who give platelets can donate every seven days, up to 24 times a year. Just like Astros are heroes to their fans this season, those who give platelets are heroes to the many patients in our region who need them.

Cypress resident Eden Green, 12, received multiple red blood cell and platelet transfusions after she was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer in June 2015. The cancer was so rare it did not have a name. In fact, no doctor on record had treated it in the country.

The cancer started in her right tibia and spread to the rest of her body. Eden said when it began, she was in pain all over. She was unable to walk for nine months. While she was being treated, the Green family became close to others in the hospital unit. Several of her friends are still there, fighting their battles.“It is scary to find out that you have cancer. All I knew was people with cancer die. It is a lot to digest and wrap your brain around at the age of 10,” Eden said at The Blood Center’s recent Celebration of Life event.

“They are still in need of blood products to survive,” Eden said. “Unfortunately, over the past year, there are several children that have not been able to beat cancer. My family and I have attended many funerals, which has been hard.”

Now cancer free, Eden wants to help others and plans to write a children’s book to give to children in the hospital who have been diagnosed with cancer.

“I encourage you to give the gift of life through blood donation,” Eden said. “It is a free gift to give, and it matters more than you could ever realize.”

Visit giveblood.org for more information about The Blood Center’s mission to save and sustain lives.

The Blood Center is the primary supplier of blood components to more than 170 hospitals and health care facilities in a 26-county Texas Gulf Coast region.

Cutline: Eden Green, 12, speaks at the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center’s Celebration of Life luncheon in February. Green was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer in 2015 and multiple red blood cell and platelet transfusions helped save her life.

Julie Silva

I came on board the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center as the communications manager in February 2018. Everything I’m learning is brand-new to me as I spent the bulk of my career in print journalism, having served at papers in Houston, Laredo, Corpus Christi and the Rio Grande Valley. In the short time I’ve spent at The Blood Center, I’ve been amazed at how committed the community is to help save and sustain lives

Blood Center News

I am an unashamed fan of Wonder Woman. Family members reminisced about how I used to wrap a towel around my neck and run around the house singing the “Woman Woman” theme song. (No, that wasn’t a typo. My ability to get song lyrics wrong was apparent even at the young ages of 3 and 4.)

I was excited last summer to meet Shelley and her daughter, Courtney. The two were full of laughter and fun when Shelley came into our office for a photo shoot. Shelley is one of our long-time dedicated donors. She’s got that kind of giving spirit, and we were thrilled to capture a few photos of her.

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to help save more lives than ever in 2019. But those automated donations can take anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half. Mine, in particular, lean more toward the hour-and-a-half territory. What’s a girl to do? Watch Netflix movies and donate. And because I’m so thankful for your willingness to help us save lives, here are my top five recommendations for January.

One of the best parts of the Holiday Hugs tradition is reading the notes our donors write for patients in the hospital over the holidays. It’s not an easy task as each patient has his or her own individual circumstance, so we’re restricted in which cards we tie to each bear. Still, many of our donors are well up to the task.

I learned something the other day. Every day, someone’s life is being saved. I know that seems obvious, but let that sink in. What may be a normal Thursday for most could be something completely different for someone else. And that’s exactly what happened to donor Gary Gilson. Aug. 16 was one of the most important moments in Gary’s life. Not only did he save lives that day, but someone else saved the life of his loved one, as well.

A 3-year-old girl lies in a hospital bed in the middle of the room with monitors attached to her bare chest. She’s awake, but she doesn’t lift her head as we walk into the room. Still, she follows us with her eyes. The only sound we hear from her is a small cough while a nurse comes in to check her stats.

Blood transfusion is one treatment used to combat complications from sickle cell disease, a form of anemia most likely to affect people of African descent. Prince and her now 27-year-old daughter, Quannecia McCruse, founded the Sickle Cell Association of Houston years ago to educate and provide resources to the community.

Penny, a local teacher with some free time over the summer, has helped us kick off our new Volunteer Driver program. Are you interested in joining us in our mission to save lives? Call us at (713) 791-6262 or email volunteering@giveblood.org.

I’m a scaredy-cat. I readily admit it. I hate needles. That’s always been my excuse for why I don’t volunteer for anything with a needle. Flu shot? No way. Vaccines? I still remember the sheer terror I felt from them growing up.

CYPRESS – There is nothing more American than baseball and saving lives. Everyone who participates in The Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center’s Home Run for Life competition will get a chance at both through June 30.

Here at The Blood Center, we pride ourselves on being an organization of diversity. We work together to save and sustain lives, and we each bring a unique perspective when it comes to fulfilling our mission.

Hurricane Harvey destroyed homes, cars and many other things, but one thing it couldn’t destroy is the compassion for others in newlywed couple Gilbert and Stefanie Cruz. Gilbert and Stefanie were set to get married just a few days after Harvey passed, but due the storm’s aftermath they had to alter all of their plans on a moment’s notice.

Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center has partnered with two local agencies providing emergency medical services to help save more lives when time is of the essence, now administering whole blood to patients on the ground.

The Lone Star Circle of Life bike tour visits Texas cities to raise awareness of the need for blood, marrow, organ and tissue donations to honor those impacted by these donation types. This year’s eight-day, 600-mile tour included stops in Houston and College Station.